# Madge Sinclair

Madge Dorita Sinclair CD (née Walters; April 28, 1938 – December 20, 1995) was a Jamaican actress best known for her roles in Cornbread, Earl and Me (1975), Convoy (1978), Coming to America (1988), Trapper John, M.D. (1980–1986), and the ABC TV miniseries Roots (1977). Sinclair also voiced the character of Sarabi, Mufasa's mate and Simba's mother, in the Disney animated feature film The Lion King (1994). A five-time Emmy Award nominee, Sinclair won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as "Empress" Josephine in Gabriel's Fire in 1991.

## Early life and education

Born Madge Dorita Walters in Kingston, Jamaica, to Jamaican parents Herbert and Jemima Walters, Sinclair studied at Shortwood College for Women. After completing her studies, she worked as a teacher in Jamaica until 1966, when she left for New York to pursue her career in acting. Sinclair began acting with Joseph Papp's Public Theatre. In 1971 she portrayed Clytemnestra in the New York Shakespearean Festival production of The Wedding of Iphigenia.

## Career

Sinclair made her film debut as Mrs. Scott in Conrack (1974) opposite Jon Voight; a role which earned her a nomination for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture. Her next major critical success was as Bell Reynolds in the 1977 ABC mini-series Roots for which she received her first nomination for a Primetime Emmy Award.
Following Roots, she starred in the 1978 film Convoy as the Widow Woman, and she played Leona Hamilton in Cornbread, Earl and Me. Also in 1978, she co-starred in the short-lived sitcom Grandpa Goes to Washington. Sinclair went on to a stint in the 1980s as nurse Ernestine Shoop on the series Trapper John, M.D. opposite Pernell Roberts. She received three Emmy nominations for her work on the show, and critic Donald Bogle praised her for "maintaining her composure and assurance no matter what the script imposed on her". In 1988, Sinclair played Queen Aoleon alongside James Earl Jones's King Jaffe Joffer in the Eddie Murphy comedy Coming to America, which reunited her on screen with her Roots husband and co-star John Amos. Later, both Sinclair and Jones would reunite as the queen and king for the roles of Sarabi and Mufasa, Simba’s parents, in the Disney animated film The Lion King (1994). The film became one of the best-selling titles ever on home video. It would also be her last film role. The two also collaborated on the series Gabriel's Fire, which earned Sinclair an Emmy in 1991 for Best Supporting Actress in a Dramatic Series, famously beating out the expected winner, L.A. Law's Diana Muldaur.
Sinclair played the role of Lally in the 1991 Channel 4 television miniseries The Orchid House (based on Phyllis Shand Allfrey's novel of the same name), directed by Horace Ové, and also received critical praise for her supporting role in the 1992 television movie Jonathan: The Boy Nobody Wanted with JoBeth Williams. In 1993, Sinclair came to London to appear on stage at the Cochrane Theatre in The Lion, by Michael Abbensetts and directed by Horace Ové, for the Talawa Theatre Company. From 1994 to 1995, she played a supporting role in the short-lived ABC-TV sitcom Me and the Boys, which starred Steve Harvey. Sinclair, in her role as the captain of the USS Saratoga in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, is commonly cited as the first female Starfleet starship captain to appear in Star Trek. Years later, Sinclair played Geordi La Forge's mother, captain of the USS Hera, in Star Trek: The Next Generation's "Interface". Her final acting role was in an episode of the sitcom Dream On, which first aired one month before her death.

## Personal life

Sinclair was married to Royston Sinclair, a Jamaican police officer, from 1956 until 1969 and had two sons with him. In 1982, Sinclair married actor Dean Compton, to whom she was still married at the time of her death.

## Death

Sinclair died on December 20, 1995, aged 57, following a 13-year battle with leukemia. Her remains were cremated and her ashes were scattered in her hometown in Jamaica. She was posthumously awarded the Order of Distinction, rank of Commander, for service in the performing arts by Prime Minister of Jamaica, P. J. Patterson in October 2000.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1972 | The Witches of Salem: The Horror and the Hope | Tituba | Short |
| 1974 | I Love You... Good-bye | Salesgirl | |
| 1974 | Conrack | Mrs. Scott | Nominated—NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture |
| 1975 | Cornbread, Earl and Me | Leona Hamilton | |
| 1976 | I Will, I Will... for Now | Dr. Williams | |
| 1976 | Leadbelly | Miss Eula | |
| 1978 | Convoy | Widow Woman | |
| 1978 | Uncle Joe Shannon | Margaret | |
| 1986 | Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home | Saratoga Captain | Uncredited |
| 1988 | Coming to America | Queen Aoleon | |
| 1990 | The End of Innocence | Nurse Bowlin | |
| 1994 | The Lion King | Sarabi | Voice; final film role |

### Television films

| Year | Title | Role |
| 1975 | Guess Who's Coming to Dinner | Sarah Prentiss |
| 1978 | One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story | Georgia LeFlore |
| 1980 | Guyana Tragedy: The Story of Jim Jones | Mrs. Jefferson |
| 1980 | High Ice | Dr. Pittman |
| 1987 | Look Away | Elizabeth Keckley |
| 1992 | Jonathan: The Boy Nobody Wanted | Faye Lincoln |

### Television series

| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1972 | Sesame Street | Dr. Marzullo | Episode 0343: Measles vaccination |
| 1972 | Madigan | Boots | Episode: "The Midtown Beat" |
| 1974 | Medical Center | Arbiter | Episode: "Tainted Lady" |
| 1974 | The Waltons | Minnie Doze | Episode: "The Visitor" |
| 1975 | Joe Forrester | Sheila Gates | Episode: "Stake Out" |
| 1975 | Doctors' Hospital | n/a | Episode: "Come at Last to Love" |
| 1976 | Executive Suite | Judge Gillespie | Episode: "Who Shall Hall Bring Mercy" |
| 1977 | Roots | Bell Reynolds | 3 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie |
| 1977 | Serpico | Michelle | Episode: "One Long Tomorrow" |
| 1978 | ABC Afterschool Specials | Mrs. Bradsbury | Episode: "The Rag Tag Champs" |
| 1979 | The White Shadow | Louelia Judd | Episode: "Sudden Death" |
| 1980–1986 | Trapper John, M.D. | Ernestine Shoop | 129 episodes Nominated—Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (1983–85) |
| 1984 | ABC Afterschool Specials | Miss Thomas | Episode: "Backwards: The Riddle of Dyslexia" |
| 1987 | Mathnet | Amelia Airliver | Episode: "Problem of the Trojan Hamburger" |
| 1987 | Ohara | Gussie Lemmons | 11 episodes |
| 1987 | Starman | Lorraine Michaels | Episode: "The Test" |
| 1989 | Gideon Oliver | Angela Holmes | Episode: "By the Waters of Babylon" |
| 1989 | Roseanne | Muriel Johnston | Episode: "Guilt by Disassociation" |
| 1989 | Midnight Caller | Ida May | Episode: "Take Back the Streets" |
| 1990–1991 | Gabriel's Fire | Empress Josephine | 22 episodes Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series Nominated—Viewers for Quality Television Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Quality Drama Series |
| 1991–1992 | Pros and Cons | Josephine Austin | 12 episodes |
| 1991 | The Orchid House | Lally | 4 episodes |
| 1992 | L.A. Law | Jessica Rollins | Episode: "Diet, Diet My Darling" |
| 1992 | Tales from the Crypt | Lucille | Episode: "Curiosity Killed" |
| 1993 | Alex Haley's Queen | Dora | Episode 3 |
| 1993 | Star Trek: The Next Generation | Captain Silva La Forge | Episode: "Interface" |
| 1994–1995 | Me and the Boys | Mary Tower | 19 episodes |
| 1995 | Dream On | Mrs. Charles | Episode: "Little Orphan Eddie" |